Monday, May 16, 2011

Well, at least the bluebirds know what time of year it is! They have been romancing my truck and its mirror and flying around having a good time.

Spring is such a mixed up time. Madi, the young woman who works for me, was so happy on Wednesday because she got to cut the grass on the farm! Having sun was so unusual, she forgot to put on sunscreen and so was suffering the following day (when it rained again!) We got up to nearly 80 degrees on Saturday, but we were spared the tornadoes and hail that were predicted! Early this morning it snowed--but of course, it didn't stay long!

Sunday, after a beautiful morning, it rained, but the Girl Scouts that came for a farm visit didn't seem to mind. They enjoyed visiting the alpacas, feeding grain and petting BMCA Madison and BMCA Leyla, who always love the attention. The group of older girls and geldings and Katherine, the llama, kept approaching the girls with their usual curiosity. The girls learned what it meant when I explained that alpacas were herd animals, as they pursued the animals to try to get them interested in the grain.

The girls collected eggs and laughed at the skinny, bare necks of the turkins! They each picked their "favorite" egg to take home. They also took small ziplock bags of alpaca poop home!

In the garage, after spending time with the animals, the girls used alpaca fiber dyed with Kool-Aid which they felted and strung along with beads to make zipper pulls. They feasted on cake and lemonade and worked on an alpaca crossword puzzle and word search. I gave them a demonstration of spinning and they read the display boards that showed pictures of shearing, a cria birth, and other pertinent alpaca "facts."

"I really had fun!" one of the girls said to me. And her grandmother who came along as one of the chaperones decided that she really wants two alpacas!

About Me

Was I always an alpaca farmer? Heck, no! In fact, the first time I saw an alpaca was in 2000 when my brother took me to an alpaca show. I inherited Big Meadow Creek Alpacas from Brad after he passed away in 2008. He had moved from Boston the summer before 9/11 and had four alpacas by the following spring. Find me on facebook, too!